Emirates has announced the first destinations which will see its refurbished four-class Boeing 777 aircraft.
The carrier begins upgrading its 777 fleet today (1 July), and plans to bring the first refurbished aircraft into service from 11 August (or earlier if works allows).
Flights EK83 and EK84 to and from Geneva are set to see the refurbished 777 from 11 August, followed by flights EK312 and EK 313 to and from Tokyo Haneda from 1 September, and EK183 and EK 184 to and from Brussels from 11 September.
The upgraded aircraft will feature a refurbished first class cabin, 38 new business class seats, 24 premium economy seats and 256 economy seats.
The move to fit Emirates’ new generation business class seat means the end of the dreaded middle seat, with the new cabins being configured 1-2-1.
The carrier first unveiled plans for what it referred to as the “largest known fleet retrofit” project in August 2022, with the refurbishment of 67 A38os and 53 777s. This figure has since risen, with thew decision to retrofit an additional 71 aircraft.
The first retrofitted A380 entered service in January 2023, and more than 20 superjumbos have so far been refurbished.
As previously reported upgraded aircraft are now serving 16 destinations – New York JFK, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, London Heathrow, Sydney, Auckland, Christchurch, Melbourne, Singapore, Mumbai, Bangalore, Sao Paulo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita and of course the carrier’s Dubai hub.
The airline plans to increase this to 36 cities by February 2025, with the first line-fitted A350 joining the carrier’s fleet in September, and more refurbished A380s and 777s set to enter service in the coming months.
In May Emirates announced that it would resume flights to Edinburgh using the A350 from 4 November.
Commenting on the news Adnan Kazim, deputy president and chief commercial officer, Emirates, said:
“With the addition of the newly retrofitted Boeing 777s to our fleet, we’re capturing the opportunity to introduce our highly acclaimed products like Premium Economy to more cities already served by this aircraft type in our network, in addition to more seating variety in four classes.
“Borrowing inspiration from our flagship A380 in every cabin, our Boeing 777 with revamped interiors boast the very best in customer comfort and will feature modern design details and signature cabin finishings, with a new Business Class cabin that provides more privacy for our customers, in addition to other thoughtful touches that underscore our exceptional value proposition.
“Our investment and intense focus on offering the best possible product across every cabin class also ensures we provide a consistent experience on both the Boeing 777s and A380s.”
Have you travelled in Emirates’ premium economy cabin yet? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
